We urge Catholics to be vigilant and skeptical about their new bishop. Bishop Salvatore Cordileone comes from an especially corrupt diocese that was almost kicked out of bankruptcy court for being deceptive. He and his San Diego colleagues chose to protect their own reputation instead of protecting children by exploiting bankruptcy law to continue hiding clergy sex crimes. It is a tempting assumption to believe a new bishop will be more open, compassionate and proactive than the old bishop was. That, however, is risky and naďve. Oakland Parishioners should continue pushing for real reform and genuine openness about clergy sex crimes and cover-ups.

Finally we hope the new bishop reexamines the diocesan decision to promote Fr. Padraig Greene to become a pastor. We continue to believe this is a reckless and potentially dangerous move in light of Greenes past sex crimes.

(SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, is the nations oldest and largest support group for clergy abuse victims. Weve been around for 20 years and have more than 8,000 members across the country. Despite the word priest in our title, we have members who were molested by religious figures of all denominations, including nuns, rabbis, bishops, and Protestant ministers. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org)